Chuckles

It’s not that I’ve never had Chuckles, but it’s been a very, very long time. I don’t actually know who eats Chuckles. It’s not me. And it’s pretty hard to figure it out because I never see them being sold, let alone being eaten.

The last time I remember seeing them was in a vending machine on the campus of Kent State University in the basement of the building where my father worked ... this would be around 1978. I probably bought them. I loved that vending machine, it was super-cheap and sometimes dispensed two candy bars, it was like a slot machine! (Except when you win candy you can’t really stuff it back in the coin slot to try to win more.)

What sets this flavor assortment apart is the first one:

Licorice - light and refreshing, a completely different experience from the doughy/molasses experience of black licorice vines. The licorice isn’t overpowering but nice and smooth.

Cherry - this is one of the worst and for lots of personal reasons. It reminds me of medicine, like so many of those cough potions and penicillin elixirs of my youth, I just can’t bring myself to like cherry that much. This is sweet and strong and has a slight bitter, poison note to it that I’m never sure is the color or the actual cherry flavor.

Orange - wonderfully zesty without much of a tart hint to it at all. It was so orangy that it left a slight burning tingle to the inside of my lips. Maybe Chuckles can be called the Altoids of jelly candies?

Lemon - zesty, light and sparkly. The zest actually lends a little bitter note in the middle to this one, but I don’t mind it a bit because it reminds me of real lemon rinds.

Lime - well, there’s always the underdog in every flavor mix and lime is it here. It’s everything you’d expect from a circa 1920 lime candy - the essence of a clean floor. It’s kind of sad that the fabulous flavor of lime was co-opted by the cleaning moguls, but there you have it, for at least two generations the scent of lime just can’t be separated from the smell of a clean bathroom. Even with all its baggage, I still ate the whole piece (not true with the cherry one) and wondered what was so bad with associating a piece of candy with sparkling tiles?

Now, I like jelly candies. I do find myself pining for Spearmint Leaves and Orange Slices from time to time, but I don’t really care for buying a half pound of them, which is usually how they’re sold. But then again, when I want Spearmint Leaves, Chuckles aren’t going to scratch that itch and maybe if I’m in the mood for citrus, I’m not going to want that licorice or cherry. The point is, no one else sells a single serving of jelly candies like this and these are really good versions of a jelly candy because the flavors are so intense. Now I’ve gotten myself all worked up and I’m a little sad they don’t sell these around here.

I used to eat these when I was younger. I still see them in those little newspaper/magazine stores when I’m in NYC. I like them because each Chuckle has all those little tire-like demarcations, so you can eat them slowly and methodically, bit by bit ^_^

You and my brother would make great candy sharing buddies because he loves all and any “red-flavored” candy and hates licorice.

Lesley - Chuckles are way better than Sunkist Fruit Gems in my humble opinion. Chuckles are firmer and prettier colored and the sugar coating adds a more distinct texture.

Chuckles were sold in a vending machine at the YWCA where I went to an after school program as a kid. I honestly don’t know if I’ve even seen them since then. I really liked them because they had the licorice flavor. Not the green one though, that was the pits.

Never had Chuckles before, but from the looks of them, they look similar to a something we get here in the UK - “York Fruits” - Little sugar coated Jellies in the shape of their respective fruits. They’re not very nice, the kind of thing you win at a cheap prize draw. You know, it’s either the set of Coasters, donated by the local OAP’s home, or a box of York Fruits.

i remembered these as a kid too, and hadn’t thought at all about them until i discovered your terrific blog; so i went an bought some at said newspaper/magazine store and here’s my humble opinion;

cherry- ok not a fan of cherry things, but i do like the coughsyrup/medicinal flavours not so much because they taste at all like cherry but i’m fond of them on their own… that said chuckles cherry is ..well, icky. too sweet.

Lemon- fairly typical, not terribly impressed, but not unpleasant.

Lime- here again, i sort of like ‘floorcleaner’ flavour in and of itself, not cause it tastes at all like lime- so these are tasty (for real lime taste i recommend Brach’s lime flavour hard-candy)

Orange- chuckles has one of the best orange flavours of any jelly i’ve had. very tasty.

Licorice- HUGE fan of licorice of most kinds (allsorts; not so much), chuckles might become a favorite simply because of this…

however as far as fruit jelly’s go, surprisingly
lifesaver’s makes REALLY good ones, particulalry the assortment that includes grapefruit, which is right up there with the Haribo wedges, as being one the best confections ever made.

I am crazy about Chuckles ever since I was a child in rural U.S. Recently my tastebuds have been playing tricks on me. Some versions of Chuckles seem to have the Black Licorice flavor on the black candy while others have clove or pimneta (allspice) has anyone noticed this? -or do I need to seek psychological help? Thanks!

I LOVE chuckles and agree with you about the licorice flavor WHEN I can find chuckles the licorice flavor varies.

In Indiana they must either not be selling them or I don’t know where they are. Used to find them in hospitals and hotels, obviously I prefer not to hang at in either of those locations.
Chuckles are good when you first quit smoking!!!

I’m now 60 years old and am still buying Chuckles!! I just love ‘em! When I was a kid, I used to ride my bike down to the corner store and at least five at a time. They were five cents a package!! And I am somewhat embarrassed to tell you that I still eat them in the same order, always saving my favorites for last (orange and red.)

I enjoy Chuckles, they’re good! At work, my pal and I are constantly ridiculed for eating Chuckles. It’s tough. The others, the snobs that don’t eat Chuckles, they look down at us and sometimes “chuckle” while pointing…people stare…it’s horrible. But I’ll never stop! Chuckles Rule!

Tell me about it, Eric. What’s a guy gotta do to get a little love for the Chuckles? I’m glad this site has devoted some time to this time-honored treat. They’re so brightly colored and this photo really does justice to them; even the name says fun. However, they are lined up incorrectly in the photo, no? Shouldn’t licorice be in the middle, flanked by two Chuckles on either side, like a king protected by royal guards?

I’ve always loved Chuckles. I go on binges, buying them after lunch for 5 days in a row, then not again for a year or so. And I’m always trying to figure out the best order to eat them. I like licorice the best, so it goes early. I like lemon the least, so I can’t end with that one. And they are lined up incorrectly, licorice is always in the middle, red and green on either end and yellow follows the red.

Chuckles are what is driving DOD. They can be found in the snake shops and vending machines at the Pentagon and Ft. Belvoir. If you can’t get to those locations go to Round Lake Minnesota and behold the ultimate in chewey goodness.

If you see Chuckles at your job site, your job is secure. If not, start updating your resume.

This is one on Eistein’s many Theories of Physics and Relativity. Chuck2=EJob2

Ok noone seems to remember the chuckles easter egg jellies. They were assorted in flavor but all the bottoms were yellow. I was a little girl then but I so looked forward to easter and my grandmom buying those for my basket. I wish I could find them again brings back SWEET memories.

When GM had layoffs/strikes in the 80’s, my Dad worked at a Chuckles factory in IL. to feed us five kids while he waited to go back to work. Man, Fridays were awesome! Though sometimes it was all one color, he would bring home a few #s of chuckles for us to tear into! I guess seeing GM go down makes me get that taste in my mouth again—I’ll have to check Cracker Barrel.

Also, my barber would have the individually wrapped singles on hand for kids, which I never saw anywhere else. I would love to find those for my desk!

Spotted Chuckles quite recently @ BigLots here in the midwest. Wikipedia reports they were first manufactured in 1921. Can anyone name the slew of companies that have in-turn owned this brand-name, and where-all they were manufactured over the years?

Lately for some reason I have been craving Chuckles. I use to eat these when I was younger and unlike a previous blogger I would eat these in the order that I like them least. Lime first, then Lemon, Orange, Cherry and Licorice my favorite last. I am having a hard time finding them in Raleigh, where I work. However there is a Big Lots store here that I will check since that was mentioned above. When I go home in a few week I will look for them. I am pretty sure they are sold in New Jersey, somewhere.

Like I said, try looking outside of Jupiter on the moon Io. Aliens there have been stockpiling Chuckles since the early thirties and now have a huge supply. If you can’t make it up there, try Cosco or BJ’s.

I grew up in Danville, Illinois and the Fred J. Amend Candy company was the only Chuckles candy factory in the country, to my knowledge, for many years, where my best friend’s mother and father both worked until they retired. There main candy was Chuckles and I still love this candy, although it is harder and harder to find anywhere, especially in Wyoming! Once in a great while I can find the old 5 cent (now 69 cents) packages.

I used to eat Chuckles as a kid in the 70s. I loved the packaging and variety of flavors. I have recently discovered a number of Ace Hardware stores here in south east Michigan seems to stock them…and I have been buying them!

Chuckles were a big part of my childhood and teenage years. I worked in the local pharmacy and stocked the candy racks daily with all the popular candies of the 60’s and 70’s. I treated myself to a pack of Chuckles every few days, and like Jean said above, it was important to eat them in the same order each time: Licorice (I gave it away or threw it out—never liked it), then lime, orange, lemon and cherry last! I haven’t seen real Chuckles in several years, but I still occasionally buy the knockoff sugared jellies in bags at CVS or the supermarket for a quick sugar fix!

I worked at the Chuckles factory in Danville, Il for 6yrs,73-79. We made jelly candy, jelly beans, and marshmallow. Quite an operation. It was very seasonal. I work in the “kitchen” to packing to shipping. That place put a lot of kids through college. Good Time

We have a store and just opened a box of Chuckles to put out on the shelf in the bottom of the box was a blue pill with the writting L36B which is Naproxen Sodium . Why is this in the bottom of one of your boxes.

I grew up in a small town outside of Danville where the a chuckles plant was. My mom knew a lady who worked there. For a number of years this lady would bring us a 25 lb box of the individually wrapped pieces at Christmas. We always looked forward to it. That box would last for months. I liked digging the red pieces out. I really wish they still sold them in individual pieces. I would be first in line to buy a case. Oh for the good old days.

I bought a 4 0z box of chuckles in Casper Wyoming on my way home. I was so happy to see them. i told my husband about when I was a little girl in Chicago, I always ate them. The black Chuckles were my favorite. There was not one licorice one in the box. I was so disappointed.

Chuckles rule! Been eating them since I was a kid, and I have a box of 24 right next to me….Christmas Tree Shops here in the Albany, NY area have them, ebay sells them by the case where I get mine….red is the best, black is the worst…:)

Grew up in Chicago; remember eating Chuckles as a kid. Always gave the black ones to my Dad since he liked licorice and I didn’t. But I recall them changing the black licorice ones to purple grape-flavored ones. Dad was disappointed but I liked the grape flavor. Does anyone else remember this?

I’m so glad I can still find Chuckles pretty much anywhere here in the Chicago area. I loved them as a kid. I actually only eat the black (first) and red (second) and give the rest away. I was excited to see an ‘all red’ Chuckles candy at a local Meijer’s store, but I didn’t like them as much as I thought I would. Still love the original.

Chuckles are the best since I’ve been a kid eating them in 1960. My favs are licorice and Lime. Long Island and NYC sell them almost everywhere candies are sold as well in the vending machine in the school I teach at for the faculty.Awesome!!

Candyology 101 - Episode 35 - Whatchamacallit
In the latest Candyology 101 podcast, Maria and I tackled a little-celebrated candy bar, the Whatchamacallit. We’re also trying out a new format, which is a little shorter, like a handful of fun size candy bars! (more)

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Please do not use my photos without prior permission directly from me, they represent what I ate in preparation for these reviews and are not to be used for other purposes.